Samsung narrowly avoids 18-day chip strike after last-minute wage deal with 48,000-worker union — tentative deal, subject to workers' vote, suspends billions of dollars worth of potential losses

Samsung workers on strike.

Samsung Electronics has narrowly avoided an 18-day strike at its South Korean chip operations after reaching a last-minute tentative wage agreement with its labor union on Wednesday — just hours before workers were due to walk out.

The union, representing nearly 48,000 members, said it would suspend the general strike planned for May 21 to June 7 and put the deal to an internal vote. Voting is expected to run from May 22 to May 27, though some notices put the window at May 23 to May 28. If members approve it, the tentative agreement becomes formal; if they reject it, the strike threat could return.

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